The invention relates to customized wallpaper, and methods for allowing customers to select a particular wallpaper design from a displayed selection, and to customize the design by adding personalized information. The method requires the use of a digital image of the basic design that is to be customized.
Among the variety of ways of decorating walls in both dwellings and commercial enterprises is the use of wall coverings, particularly wallpaper. The term xe2x80x9cwallpaperxe2x80x9d generally refers to rolls of sheets of a substrate onto which is printed a repeating pattern. The substrate is not limited to paper, but can be any other type of sheet onto which print can be applied, and that will adhere to a wall surface, such as vinyl sheeting.
While wallpaper sometimes provides a better aesthetic appearance than paint, wallpaper decorations are necessarily limited by the repeating patterns that are required to allow alignment of similarly patterned sheets of wallpaper side by side on a wall. This requirement that the wallpaper have a repeating pattern limits artistic expression and frequently reduces aesthetic appeal. In certain situations, it may be preferable to have a mural that does not have a repeating pattern, instead of wallpaper. However, mural paintings are prepared by skilled artists so that they are expensive.
There is yet a need for a type of wallpaper that does not have a repeating pattern, and that can be adapted for use on walls of different sizes. Desirably, the wallpaper should also allow a purchaser to customize the designs further by adding personal detailed touches, such as images of family members, and the like. It is further desirable that the customer should be able to select the wallpaper from a display, request custom modification, and receive the specially prepared wallpaper within a short space of time.
The invention provides customized wallpaper panels, that can be sold on rolls, for use as wall decoration.
In one embodiment, the invention is of a method of providing customized wallpaper, not having a repeating pattern, that includes creating a digital image of the basic design. Thereafter, copies of the basic design are displayed on a medium suitable for customer selection, such as a book or a video display unit. The customer may then select a basic design, and provide design-customizing information that is personal to the customer, such as color scheme, the addition of images of family members, animals, landscapes, or any other modification. Upon receiving the wallpaper design-customizing information, the digital image of the design is modified to include this customer-provided information to thereby produce a customized digital image of the design. The customized digital image is then converted to a visual image, and printed onto a suitable substrate for use as a decorative wallpaper. The wallpaper may comprise several rolls of sheets. Notwithstanding, when the sheets are properly aligned, and adhered to the wall side by side in proper sequence, a complete design or scene is produced as in a mural painting, without need for the repeating pattern that is typical of prior art wallpaper.
In another embodiment, a vendor of customized wallpaper in displays copies of basic designs comprised of contiguous decorative panels of the wallpaper, in a medium such as a book or video display unit, to customers for review and selection of designs. The customer then selects a wallpaper design, or a subdesign of the selected design. A subdesign is a contiguous portion of the design, and not the entire displayed design. The customer is then permitted to further customize the subdesign or design by adding design features personally to the customer. The vendor relays the customer design selection, customization information, and subdesign details (if any) to a source for customizing an existing digital image of the design. The digital image is then customized by incorporating customizing features into the design or subdesign. The customized design or subdesign is then converted to a visual image that is printed onto a suitable substrate for the wallpaper.